Remarkable Kitzmiller reactions
The purpose of this thread is collecting the many remarkable/amazing/unbelievable quotes and reactions to Judge Jones’s decision yesterday in Kitzmiller v. Dover.
I’ll start with a tidbit indicating that there might even be some trouble brewing at the Discovery Institute, from nothing less than a Discovery Institute board member, Mike Vaska:
Discovery Institute Lashes Out At Intelligent Design Ruling
(December 20, 2005, KOMO Staff & News Services)
“Judge Jones got on his soapbox to offer his own views of science, religion and evolution,” John West, a senior fellow at the Discovery Institute, said in a news release. “He makes it clear that he wants his place in history as the judge who issued a definitive decision about intelligent design. This is an activist judge who has delusions of grandeur.”
[…]
The Discovery Institute describes itself as a general policy think tank that embraces “God-given reason and the permanency of human nature” as well as democratic, free-market and other ideals. Its fellows publish articles and conduct research on a variety of topics, ranging from international relations to defense.
In 2003, the institute received a 10-year, $9.5 million grant from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation to explore solutions to regional transportation problems.
The institute’s board of directors includes several prominent business and political leaders, including former Republican U.S. Sen. Slade Gorton, retired Microsoft Corp. Chief Operating Officer Robert Herbold, Madrona Venture Group cofounder Tom Alberg, and former state attorney general candidate Mike Vaska.
Vaska and Gorton joined to help with the institute’s transportation initiative. Gorton declined to comment about the intelligent design issue Tuesday, but Vaska said he was dismayed by the institute’s response to the ruling.
“It’s very troubling to me when people, every time they lose in court, blame it on an ‘activist judge,”’ Vaska said. He added in an e-mail: “I also read the judge’s opinion (most of it at least). He’s not a ‘judicial activist.”‘
Vaska, a Lutheran and a moderate Republican, said he supports the Discovery Institute because it supports those who wish to challenge orthodoxy. Board members don’t necessarily agree with every position the institute takes, he said.
(bolds added; hat-tip to Red State Rabble)
I bet Vaska realizes that Judge Jones is a more conservative Lutheran Republican than he is, and perhaps is having second – or third or fourth – thoughts about ID. (Judge Jones is also a Lutheran, and this “activist judge” was appointed by George W. Bush appointed in 2002 (see also whitehouse.gov).
Post your favorites in the comments section.